The Shark Arm Case – Coogee Aquarium – 1935 – Jim Smith, Reginald Holmes and Patrick Brady

On Anzac Day 1935 a crowd at the Coogee Aquarium Baths watched a captive tiger shark throw up a human arm. It sounds like a tall tale from the pub, but it really happened, and it led to one of the strangest murder cases Sydney has ever seen. The arm had a tattoo of two boxers on it, and it belonged to a missing ex-boxer and small-time crook called Jim Smith. Before long, police were digging into forgery, insurance scams and harbour smuggling. A respectable McMahons Point boatbuilder named Reginald Holmes tried to shoot himself and led the water police on a four-hour chase around the harbour. Then he was found shot dead near the Harbour Bridge on the very morning the inquest began. The man charged with Smith's murder, Patrick Brady, walked free. Officially, nobody has ever been convicted of either death.

The tiger shark on show at the Coogee Aquarium in 1935, the fish at the centre of the whole affair. Unknown photographer, 1935, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

A Shark for the Anzac Day Crowds

Sydney was jumpy about sharks in the summer of 1935. The Dictionary of Sydney says that in late February and early March three young men had been taken by sharks at New South Wales beaches, and bounty hunters were being paid to clear the beaches. So a live man-eater in a pool was a guaranteed crowd-puller.

According to the Dictionary of Sydney, a fisherman hooked a small shark off Coogee Beach on 17 April 1935. A tiger shark of about four metres then swallowed the smaller shark and got caught as well. Rather than cut it up or sell it to the fish markets, he took the big one, still alive, to the Coogee Aquarium Baths as an attraction for the Anzac Day weekend. Wikipedia puts the catch about three kilometres off Coogee Beach and the shark at 3.5 metres.

The Sydney Crime Museum, drawing on Alex Castles's book The Shark Arm Murders, says business at the baths had been so bad that the proprietor, Charlie Hobson, put the four-metre, one-tonne shark in the pool hoping people would pay to look at it.

Tramway swimming at the Coogee Aquarium pool, 27 March 1935, only weeks before the shark arrived. State Library of New South Wales, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The Coogee Aquarium

The Coogee Aquarium and Swimming Baths officially opened on 23 December 1887, and the Coogee Palace covered the whole block bounded by Arden, Beach, Bream and Dolphin streets. Wikipedia lists what was on offer: an indoor pool about 25 by 10 metres, the aquarium, a great hall that doubled as a roller-skating rink, a Canadian toboggan running more than 70 metres down the hillside, fourteen donkeys to ride, swings, whirligigs, aviaries, a bandstand and an open-air bar. The Dictionary of Sydney says a promenade built in 1889 could hold 3,000 people, and that from the 1920s parts of the site were leased to shopkeepers and residents.

Coogee Bay around 1889, not long after the Aquarium opened. aussiejeff, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Coogee Beach around 1905 with the Coogee Palace Aquarium behind. Robert Augustus Henry L'Estrange, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Swimmers at the Coogee Aquarium in March 1935. State Library of New South Wales, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Anzac Day, 25 April 1935

For a few days the shark seemed lively, and the Dictionary of Sydney says it ate well. On Anzac Day it turned slow, sick and disoriented. Then there was a great commotion in the water and, in front of the spectators, it vomited up a human arm. The Sydney Crime Museum gives the time as 4.30 pm and says a rat and a bird also came up.

Police from Randwick were called and pulled the limb out. The Crime Museum describes a left arm with a length of rope tied around the wrist. On the inside of the forearm was a tattoo about 20 centimetres high of two figures boxing. Wikipedia's version is that the tiger shark had eaten a smaller shark before it was caught, and it was that smaller shark that had swallowed the arm in the first place.

A tiger shark in the Bahamas. This is the species that was caught off Coogee. Albert Kok, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cut, Not Bitten

At first everyone assumed it was another shark attack. The Dictionary of Sydney says a medical examination changed that: the arm had been cut off with a knife or some other sharp instrument, not bitten, and not in any surgical way. It was estimated the arm could have been in a shark's stomach for between eight and 18 days, yet the tattoo was still clear. Wikipedia adds that the Aquarium's owners killed and gutted the shark a few days later, which made things harder for the police. Wikipedia also names the forensic pathologist Sir Sydney Smith among those who examined the evidence.

Who Was Jim Smith?

Once a description of the tattoo appeared in the papers, Edwin Smith went to police and said the arm might be his brother James's. Wikipedia names the paper as the Sydney Truth. Because the hand was so well preserved, police were able to take fingerprints, and they matched James Smith's prints.

Wikipedia says Smith was born in England in 1890. He was a former boxer and ran a suburban billiard saloon, he had been missing since 7 April 1935, and he was also a police informer. The Dictionary of Sydney calls him a bankrupt builder, a former SP bookmaker and boxer, and a small-time criminal with minor convictions who had drifted to the edge of the underworld through illegal gambling. The Sydney Crime Museum says he had lived in Balmain with his wife and child and had worked at Tattersalls Club as well as the billiard saloon. A 2005 Sydney Morning Herald piece describes him as "James Smith, of Gladesville".

Holmes, Brady and the Rackets

Reginald William Lloyd Holmes (1892–1935) ran the family boatbuilding business on the harbour at McMahons Point, on Lavender Bay. The Sydney Crime Museum says he was married with two children, dined at the Royal Sydney Yacht Club and was a pillar of the local Presbyterian church. The Dictionary of Sydney says he also ran a lucrative smuggling ring, using speedboats built in his own shed to pick up cocaine, cigarettes and other contraband thrown overboard from ships passing Sydney Heads. Smith sometimes drove those boats.

The waterfront at McMahons Point in 1932, Holmes's part of the harbour. Fairfax, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Lavender Bay in the early to mid 1930s. Unknown photographer, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Wikipedia describes Holmes as a fraudster who used Smith on insurance scams. One of them, in 1934, involved sinking an over-insured cruiser called Pathfinder near Terrigal. The pair then took up with Patrick Francis Brady (1889–1965), an ex-serviceman and convicted forger. In Wikipedia's account, Holmes supplied sample signatures of his friends and clients, and Brady forged small cheques on their accounts, which he and Smith cashed. The Dictionary of Sydney says Holmes and Smith had fallen out over a failed insurance scam, and there was speculation that Smith had begun blackmailing Holmes. Wikipedia goes further and says police were later able to establish the blackmail.

The Last Night at Cronulla

Smith told his wife he was going fishing. Wikipedia says he was last seen on 7 April 1935, drinking and playing cards with Brady at the Cecil Hotel at Cronulla. The two had gone back to a small cottage Brady was renting, which Wikipedia places in Taloombi Street and the Dictionary of Sydney places on the shore of Gunnamatta Bay. Police alleged that Smith was murdered there. The Navy and the Air Force searched Port Hacking and Gunnamatta Bay, but the rest of his body was never found.

Cronulla around 1928, as it looked when Jim Smith went down there. Samuel Wood, State Library of New South Wales, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

A Cronulla beach postcard from about 1930. National Library of Australia, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Gunnamatta Bay at Cronulla today, where Brady's rented cottage stood near the shore. Maksym Kozlenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Taxi Ride

The Dictionary of Sydney says the key lead came from a Cronulla cab driver. On the morning after Smith was last seen, Brady hailed his cab and asked to go to North Sydney, then directed him to a house that turned out to be Holmes's home. Wikipedia gives the address as 3 Bay View Street, McMahons Point. The driver later testified that Brady "was dishevelled, he had a hand in a pocket and wouldn't take it out", and that he was clearly frightened. The Dictionary says Brady seemed frightened that someone was following him.

Brady was arrested on 16 May and charged with Smith's murder. Holmes was questioned too, and denied ever knowing him.

The Great Harbour Chase, 20 May 1935

On 20 May Holmes tried to kill himself with a .32 pistol. Wikipedia says the bullet flattened against the bone of his forehead and only stunned him. The sources disagree about where it happened. Wikipedia puts it in his boatshed, while the Dictionary of Sydney has him speeding out into the harbour first and firing the shot there. He fell into the water, and the Dictionary says a rope caught around his wrist and stopped him drowning. The cold water brought him round, and he crawled back into the speedboat.

What followed was a four-hour chase. The Dictionary of Sydney says the water police followed him past Circular Quay, through the mid-morning ferry traffic and right down the harbour until he gave up just outside the Heads. The Sydney Crime Museum says he was finally stopped about two kilometres out to sea, with an empty brandy bottle in the bottom of the boat. It quotes him as saying, "Jimmy Smith is dead and there is only another left. If you leave me until tonight I will finish him."

Holmes Talks

According to Wikipedia, in early June Holmes told Detective Sergeant Frank Matthews that Brady had killed Smith, cut up the body, packed it into a trunk and thrown the trunk into Gunnamatta Bay. Holmes said Brady then came to his house, showed him the severed arm and threatened to kill him unless he paid £500. Holmes said he had then driven to Maroubra and thrown the arm into the surf. The Crime Museum calls his story rambling and not always convincing. These were Holmes's allegations, and they were never tested in court.

Maroubra Beach, where Holmes told police he threw the arm into the surf. Wikipedia user, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Shot Under the Bridge, 12 June 1935

On 11 June Holmes withdrew £500 and went out late that evening, telling his wife he had to meet someone. Wikipedia says he was very careful as he left, and his wife walked him to the door of his Nash sedan. The Dictionary of Sydney says that at 1.20 am on 12 June his body was found slumped over the wheel of the car in the deserted docks area of Dawes Point, and Wikipedia places it in Hickson Road. He had been shot three times at close range. Wikipedia says the scene was made to look like suicide, but forensic police had no doubt it was murder. Holmes was cremated at the Northern Suburbs Crematorium on 13 June and left an estate worth more than £34,000.

Dawes Point and The Rocks seen from the Harbour Bridge around 1932. Unknown photographer, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The Harbour Bridge from Dawes Point on opening day, 19 March 1932. E. W. Searle, National Library of Australia, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

The Inquest and the Trial

The coroner's inquest into Smith's death, before City Coroner Edward Thompson Oram, began on 12 June 1935, only hours after Holmes was found dead. Holmes had been the main witness, and Wikipedia notes he was never given police protection. Brady's barrister, Clive Evatt (made a KC that year), argued that there was not enough to found an inquest. In his argument, an arm "did not constitute a body", so Smith, minus an arm, could in theory still be alive. Evatt's Wikipedia entry says he successfully defended Brady.

Without Holmes, the Crown case fell apart. The Sydney Morning Herald says the senior Crown prosecutor, L. J. McKean, had little to go on beyond Brady being the last man seen with Smith and having told police a string of lies about his movements. The Dictionary of Sydney says the trial was over in less than two days, and the judge directed a verdict of not guilty. Brady walked out a free man. For the next 30 years he said he had nothing to do with Smith's murder, and he died at Concord Repatriation General Hospital on 18 April 1965, aged 76.

Who Killed Holmes?

Officially, nobody was ever convicted of killing either man, and the theories have piled up ever since. The Dictionary of Sydney says Smith had informed on a young criminal, Eddie Weyman, who was caught raiding a bank as a result. Alex Castles offered the opinion that Weyman was a likely suspect for Holmes's murder, though the crimes were never formally linked. Wikipedia says Castles's book suggests Smith was killed by Brady on Weyman's orders. Wikipedia also records Castles's claim that Holmes took out a contract on his own life to spare his family the disgrace of a conviction, and the Sydney Crime Museum says police concluded Holmes had probably been killed by a hitman he hired himself. The Dictionary of Sydney points out that this was the Razorhurst era of open gang warfare, when the one unwritten rule was never to squeal to the cops.

The Justice and Police Museum at Circular Quay. Sardaka, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Books, Plays and the Screen

• Vince Kelly, The Shark Arm Case (1963, and again in 1975).
• Alex Castles, The Shark Arm Murders (Wakefield Press, 1995).
• Phillip Roope and Kevin Meagher, Shark Arm: A Shark, a Tattooed Arm and Two Unsolved Murders (Allen & Unwin, 2020). Richard Fidler interviewed Roope about it on the ABC's Conversations in 2024.
• The 1960 TV play The Grey Nurse Said Nothing was inspired by the case.
• Wikipedia lists a 2003 episode of CSI: Miami, an episode of Psych, an episode of BuzzFeed Unsolved and the 2025 series Sunny Nights among the shows that have borrowed from it.
• Bill Bryson mentions it in Down Under, but, as Wikipedia notes, he wrongly suggests the arm belonged to a swimmer the shark had eaten.

The Aquarium Site Today

The Dictionary of Sydney says a conservation order was placed on the building in 1982. In 1987 it was restored and reopened as the Beach Palace Hotel. In 2014 the Merivale group bought it and reopened it as the Coogee Pavilion, a restaurant and bar complex. So the next time you have a drink at the Pavilion, you're sitting where the shark put on its show.

The old Aquarium building at Coogee today, now the Coogee Pavilion. Sam Wilson, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Coogee Beach from the air in 1936. Royal Australian Historical Society / Adastra Aerial Survey Collection, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

A big night crowd on Coogee Beach in the 1930s. State Library of New South Wales, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Giles's Hot Sea Baths at Coogee, photographed by Sam Hood. Sam Hood, State Library of New South Wales, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Timeline

• 23 December 1887 – Coogee Aquarium and Swimming Baths officially opened.
• 1934 – The over-insured cruiser Pathfinder is sunk near Terrigal (Wikipedia).
• Late February–early March 1935 – Three young men are taken by sharks at NSW beaches.
• 7 April 1935 – Jim Smith is last seen with Patrick Brady at the Cecil Hotel, Cronulla.
• Next morning – Brady takes a taxi from Cronulla to Holmes's house at McMahons Point.
• 17 April 1935 – The tiger shark is caught off Coogee and taken to the Aquarium (Dictionary of Sydney).
• 25 April 1935 (Anzac Day) – The shark vomits up the tattooed arm.
• Days later – The arm is identified as Smith's by his brother Edwin and confirmed by fingerprints.
• 16 May 1935 – Brady is arrested and charged with murder.
• 20 May 1935 – Holmes tries to shoot himself, then leads the water police on a four-hour harbour chase.
• Early June 1935 – Holmes tells police Brady killed Smith.
• 12 June 1935, about 1.20 am – Holmes is found shot dead in his car at Hickson Road, Dawes Point.
• 12 June 1935 – The inquest into Smith's death begins before coroner E. T. Oram.
• 1935 – Brady is tried, and the judge directs a not-guilty verdict.
• 18 April 1965 – Brady dies at Concord Repatriation General Hospital, aged 76.
• 1982 – A conservation order is placed on the Aquarium building.
• 1987 – Reopened as the Beach Palace Hotel.
• 2014 – Reopened as the Coogee Pavilion.

Where the Sources Disagree

• The shark's size. Wikipedia says 3.5 metres. The Dictionary of Sydney and the Sydney Crime Museum say four metres.
• Who caught it. The Dictionary of Sydney and the Herald both say just "a fisherman" caught it. The Crime Museum, following Castles, names the Aquarium proprietor as Charlie Hobson, though it doesn't say whether Hobson caught it himself.
• Where Holmes shot himself. Wikipedia says in his boatshed. The Dictionary of Sydney says out on the harbour. The Crime Museum says off the shore at Lavender Bay, and it puts the episode "one day in April", where the others say 20 May.
• Where the chase ended. The Dictionary of Sydney says just outside Sydney Heads, and the Crime Museum says about two kilometres out to sea.
• Was anyone charged? The Coogee article on Wikipedia says nobody was ever charged over the murder. The main Shark Arm article, the Dictionary of Sydney and the Herald all say Brady was charged, tried and acquitted.
• When Holmes died. The Coogee article on Wikipedia says he was found the day before the inquest. The Dictionary of Sydney and the main Wikipedia article say he was found in the early hours of 12 June, the day the inquest began.
• The Aquarium dome. The Coogee article on Wikipedia says a storm brought the dome down in June 1945. The Dictionary of Sydney says the dome collapsed in 1984.
• Who killed Holmes. Castles suggests Holmes arranged his own killing, and the Crime Museum says police thought so too. The Dictionary of Sydney records Castles's opinion that Eddie Weyman was a likely suspect. None of it was ever proved in court.

My Earlier Posts

• Kate Leigh & Tilly Devine – Sydney's Razor Gang Queens
• The Battle of Blood Alley – Eaton Avenue – Kings Cross – 7 May 1929
• Darlinghurst Gaol & Darlinghurst Court
• Sherbrooke House – 20 Coogee Bay Road – Randwick
• Wedding Cake Island
• Sydney Trams – From Horse Trams to Light Rail

Sources

• Dictionary of Sydney staff writer, "Shark Arm murder 1935", Dictionary of Sydney, 2010 – https://dictionaryofsydney.org/entry/shark_arm_murder_1935 (including its linked entry on the Coogee Aquarium and Swimming Baths)
• "Shark Arm case", Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark_Arm_case
• "Coogee, New South Wales", Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coogee,_New_South_Wales
• "Clive Evatt", Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clive_Evatt
• "The Shark Arm Murders", Sydney Crime Museum – https://www.sydneycrimemuseum.com/crime-stories/the-shark-arm-murders/
• "Murder, tried and true", Sydney Morning Herald, 11 February 2005 – https://www.smh.com.au/national/murder-tried-and-true-20050211-gdko81.html
• Alex Castles, The Shark Arm Murders, Wakefield Press, 1995 (cited through the sources above)
• Vince Kelly, The Shark Arm Case, Angus & Robertson, 1975
• Images: Wikimedia Commons, credited under each picture

Robert Campbell - Campbell’s Cove - Campbell’s Stores - The Rocks - Sydney - NSW

 Robert Campbell - Campbell’s Cove - Campbell’s Stores - Campbell’s Bank - The Rocks - Sydney - New South Wales  

Robert Campbell was a prominent early settler and merchant in Sydney, New South Wales, during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He played a significant role in the development of the colony and left a lasting legacy, including the establishment of Campbells Cove. Here's some information about Robert Campbell and Campbells Cove:

1. Robert Campbell: Robert Campbell was born in Greenock, Scotland in 1769 and arrived in Sydney in 1798. He was an astute businessman and quickly became involved in various commercial ventures. Campbell engaged in activities such as shipping, whaling, and the export of goods, including wool and timber.

2. Business Ventures: Robert Campbell established a successful import-export business, dealing in a wide range of goods. His ships carried cargo to and from Australia, and he developed extensive trade connections with Asia, Europe, and America. Campbell's enterprises contributed to the economic growth of the young colony.

3. Campbell's Cove: Campbell's Cove is a historic site located on the western side of Sydney Cove, near The Rocks area. It was named after Robert Campbell, who owned land in the area. Campbell developed the cove as a wharf and shipping hub, playing a crucial role in the maritime trade of the colony.

4. Wharf and Warehouses: Campbell's Cove became an important center for the handling and storage of goods. Warehouses were constructed along the waterfront, facilitating the movement of cargo from ships to land. The area was bustling with activity, with vessels from around the world arriving to unload their cargo at Campbell's Cove.

5. Development and Decline: During its heyday, Campbell's Cove thrived as a commercial precinct. However, with the growth of the city and changes in shipping practices, the significance of the cove diminished over time. The construction of larger wharves in other locations, such as Darling Harbour, led to the decline of Campbell's Cove as a major maritime hub.

6. Preservation and Heritage: Today, Campbell's Cove is a heritage-listed area and part of The Rocks historic precinct. The wharves and warehouses have been preserved and restored, maintaining their historical character. The area is now a popular destination for tourists and locals, featuring restaurants, bars, and picturesque views of Sydney Harbour.

Robert Campbell's contributions to Sydney's early development, particularly through his commercial endeavors and the establishment of Campbell's Cove, are significant. The legacy of Campbell's Cove as a historic site and its connection to Sydney's maritime history continue to be celebrated and enjoyed by visitors to the area.

Robert Campbell was Born On 28th April 1768

And Died At Duntroon NSW On 25th April 1846

And is Buried At St John’s Cemetery - Parramatta 

More of the Story

Since I first put this page up I've dug a lot deeper into Robert Campbell, his wharf and the stores, so here is the rest of the story, with the sources at the bottom.

Robert Campbell in masonic regalia, a portrait by Edmund Thomas dated 1859, after the merchant's death. Edmund Thomas, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

From Greenock to Calcutta

The Australian Dictionary of Biography says Robert Campbell was born on 28 April 1769 at Greenock in Scotland. He was the youngest surviving son of the ten children of John Campbell, laird of Ashfield and the town clerk of Greenock, and his wife Agnes, née Paterson. After some business in Greenock that didn't pay, he went out to India at the age of 27 to join his elder brother John, a partner in the Calcutta agency house of Campbell Clarke & Co., which had been set up in 1790.

Robert was made a partner in January 1798, only a few months after he got there. In July 1799 the Clarkes pulled out and the firm became Campbell & Co.

Arriving in Sydney, 1798 to 1800

The firm already had its eye on New South Wales. In 1796 Campbell Clarke & Co. sent their first cargo to the colony in the Sydney Cove, which was wrecked off the Australian coast. In April 1798 Robert himself left in their ship the Hunter for another go at building up trade with Sydney.

He must have liked what he saw. The ADB says he went back to India in the Barwell in August 1798 and came back to Sydney with another cargo in the Hunter in February 1800. With the governor's permission he settled on land he had bought in 1798 at Dawes Point, where he had already started building warehouses and a private wharf. The heritage listing for Campbell's Stores says he bought the land from John Baughan.

He married Sophia Palmer in 1801. She was the sister of John Palmer, the colony's commissary. The ADB puts the wedding in November 1801, while the heritage listing says September. They had seven children: John, Robert, Charles, Sophia Ives, Sarah, George and Frederick.

The Wharf and Wharf House

The heritage listing tells it like this. By November 1801 some of Campbell's storehouses were finished, along with a stone wall and a small wharf at right angles to the main warehouse. It was claimed to be the first privately owned wharf in Australia. In 1802 Robert and Sophia moved into Wharf House, though it was still unfinished. Vaults to store goods were dug out of the sandstone rock face underneath it.

John Lewin painted the place in 1808. According to the heritage listing, his watercolour shows the jetty run out from the vaults, a two-storey storehouse and an access road to Wharf House behind the jetty. The ADB adds that by 1810 a second wharf had gone in, and behind it, in its own garden, stood Campbell's house, "finished in an elegant manner with colonades & two fronts". The Dictionary of Sydney calls the house an Indian-style bungalow.

In 1814 Macquarie made it official. On 29 June that year Campbell was granted 3 acres 3 roods running down to Sydney Cove, which the heritage listing quotes as given "in consequence of his having erected thereon several large and expensive Buildings".

Breaking the Officers' Grip on Trade

To see why Campbell mattered, you have to remember how things were run back then. The ADB says his regular shipments "noticeably ameliorated the previous pressures of scarcity and monopoly". By 1804 Campbell & Co. had £50,000 worth of goods in its Sydney warehouses. The firm also took government contracts to bring livestock from India for Sydney and the Derwent, and Governor King reckoned they had made £16,000 from the government alone between 1800 and 1804.

King did grumble about Campbell trying to bring in too much spirits. All the same, the ADB says his name "became synonymous with fair trading, reduced prices and generous credit". In 1804, 200 settlers signed a memorial to him that ended:

"But for you, we had still been a prey to the Mercenary unsparing Hand of Avarice and Extortion." (Memorial from settlers to Robert Campbell, 1804, quoted in the ADB)

The "father of Australian commerce" tag gets hung on him a lot. The ADB doesn't use those words. What it says is that by the mid-1820s he was "already recognized as 'father of the mercantile community'". He was asked to let his name go first on the list of members of the new Chamber of Commerce, and he sat on its first committee.

Not every voyage came off. Wikipedia notes that in 1802 the Campbell & Co. brig Fly, "laden with piece and other valuable goods", was lost at sea coming back from Calcutta.

Sydney Cove from Fort Macquarie in 1859, looking west across the water to Campbell's wharf on the left and Dawes Battery on the right. State Library of New South Wales (PXB 698), no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

The Lady Barlow and the East India Company, 1805

This is the bit I find the most interesting. The ADB says Campbell more or less started the colonial sealing industry, because he needed something to send back in his empty ships. In January 1805 he and his family sailed for England in his ship the Lady Barlow, carrying colony-caught oil and fur skins for the English market. Strictly speaking, that broke the rights of the East India Company, which held the monopoly on British trade east of the Cape of Good Hope. Campbell's view was that it was time New South Wales got a fairer go in trade.

According to Wikipedia's article on the ship, the Lady Barlow reached Portsmouth on 7 July 1805 carrying 264 tons of fine elephant seal oil, 13,750 seal skins and 3,673 solid feet of oak or beef wood. Customs seized her when she reached London.

The two sources tell the ending differently. The ADB says the matter "was resolved with no great commercial loss to Campbell", and that with Sir Joseph Banks behind him he even got permission for a second colonial cargo to follow. Wikipedia says Campbell won his court case but could only land the cargo in London for re-shipping to Europe. By the time customs let it go, four months had passed, seal skin prices had dropped, and he lost £7,000 on the voyage.

The ADB adds that a bill was then drawn up to treat New South Wales as a proper colony and give it some useful trade concessions. The Grenville ministry fell in March 1807 before it could be passed. Campbell came home in his ship the Albion in August 1806.

Bligh, the Rum Rebellion and Campbell's Side

When William Bligh arrived as governor, he was told Campbell was "the only private pillar which supported the honest people of the Colony". Bligh, for his part, "always found … just and humane and a gentleman like merchant". Both quotes come from the ADB.

In May 1807 Bligh made Campbell a magistrate and Naval Officer, the man in charge of shipping and customs at the port. In June he became colonial treasurer in all but name, when the police and orphan funds were put in his hands. As Naval Officer, it fell to Campbell to take official action to recover the stills John Macarthur had brought in illegally. That put him right in the middle of the trouble that came to a head in January 1808.

When Bligh was deposed, Campbell had been dining at Government House. He was put under military arrest and then sacked as treasurer, Naval Officer and collector of taxes. The rebels claimed he was trying to set up a trading monopoly with Bligh, and they kept a costly, meddling watch over Campbell & Co. In June 1809 he was tried for refusing to act as coroner. He said he didn't recognise the court, and it fined him £50 anyway. His business partner and his brother-in-law, Commissary John Palmer, were both gaoled by the rebels. The Dictionary of Sydney names the partner as Charles Hook, who backed Bligh against the officers' trading ring.

Campbell said later that his stand cost him so much business that he never fully got it back.

Exile, Ruin and the Long Climb Back

In January 1810 Macquarie arrived and put Campbell back into his old offices, one of the first to be reinstated. Two months later he resigned as Naval Officer because the duties got in the way of his business, and Macquarie thanked him for his "Zeal, Fidelity & Attention".

On 12 May 1810 he sailed, unwillingly, for England in the Hindostan to give evidence for Bligh at Lieutenant-Colonel George Johnston's trial. He also appeared before the select committee on transportation in April 1812. While he was away, his London agent failed early in 1811, owing him more than £30,000.

He got back to Sydney in the Sydney Packet on 18 March 1815 and found his house, goods and land mortgaged. Campbell & Co. was wound up. For the next few years, the ADB says, the family lived frugally on what the farms produced and on rent from the warehouses and land, while he worked through five years of tangled business to pay what he owed. The heritage listing adds that many of his ships had been wrecked while he was away, and that in January 1822 he was formally compensated by the government for the loss of his ships between 1812 and 1815.

There was an earlier loss too. In 1806, after the Hawkesbury floods, Governor King chartered Campbell's ship the Sydney to fetch rice or wheat from Calcutta, and she was wrecked off New Guinea. Wikipedia says he was given £3,000, 4,000 acres and 710 sheep in compensation. The ADB says there was a long row about how much money he had actually been awarded, £8,000 as Campbell claimed or £4,000. In 1840 he was forced by legal proceedings to repay Treasury bills that had been paid to him twice by mistake.

From April 1820 he started over with an agency and commission business. By 1825 he owned ships again. The ADB says that in 1826 Campbell's wharf "became a private one for the first time", and in 1827 he took his two eldest sons into partnership in the re-established Campbell & Co.

The Banks

In November 1816 Campbell was at the informal meeting of magistrates and leading merchants that led to the Bank of New South Wales, and he was one of its original shareholders. He was also secretary of the Savings Bank set up in July 1819 to encourage the "Industrious Poor of the Colony". The Dictionary of Sydney says he ran the Sydney branch from his offices in lower George Street at Circular Quay, and people called it "Campbell's Bank".

The Legislative Council

On 17 July 1825 Campbell was appointed one of three private members of the new Legislative Council, and he stayed on until it was replaced in 1843. The ADB says he was the only private member to oppose any part of Governor Darling's Stamp Act. In 1830 he was one of six who petitioned the King to end transportation to New South Wales and bring in free settlers instead. He also fought against trial by jury, which made him unpopular with Governor Bourke.

Canterbury and Duntroon

Campbell was a big landholder as well as a merchant. In May 1803 he bought William Cox's 900-acre Canterbury estate. According to the ADB, he bought it mainly to hold the imported cattle the government had turned down, and by 1806 that had made him the colony's largest private holder of cattle. Canterbury stayed in the family. His daughter Sarah married Arthur Jeffreys, who is named in Campbell's will. Canterbury House was built for Arthur and Sarah Jeffreys (see my Canterbury House post).

In January 1825, as part of the compensation for the Sydney, he took 4,000 acres on the newly found Limestone Plains, where Canberra stands today, and stocked it with sheep that year. Wikipedia says James Ainslie set up the station, called Pialligo, for him. Through grants and purchases in the 1820s and 1830s, Campbell ended up owning the best land on the Limestone Plains. The ADB says he didn't visit it before 1830, but he lived there more and more after Sophia died in 1833. He named it Duntroon after an ancestral home of his clan. Wikipedia says he renamed it in 1846, after Duntrune Castle in Argyll.

In 1910, once the Australian Capital Territory had been created, the government bought Duntroon for the Royal Military College. Wikipedia says the original homestead, though extended since, is now the college's officers' mess.

Duntroon homestead on the Limestone Plains, photographed in 1870. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

St John's Church and His Church Work

Campbell was brought up a Presbyterian and supported Scots Church in Sydney for years. Later he leaned more and more towards the Church of England and gave it generous endowments. The ADB says he paid at least half the cost of St John's Church at Canberra. In 1837 he gave land and money for St Peter's at Cook's River, and he also gave to churches at South Bargo, Yass and St Philip's in Sydney.

Wikipedia's St John's article says Campbell chose the site in 1840 with the support of Bishop William Grant Broughton. The foundation stone was laid on 11 May 1841 and the church was consecrated on 12 March 1845. It's the oldest church in the ACT. In March 1843, the ADB says, Broughton gave Campbell his first Communion "in a church of his own building".

St John's Church of England, Canberra, on a postcard of about 1935. Campbell picked the site in 1840. State Government Photographer, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

His Death in 1846

Robert Campbell died at Duntroon on 15 April 1846, aged 76. The ADB says he was buried at St John's, Parramatta, and the Dictionary of Sydney gives the burial date as 25 April 1846. In his will of 11 October 1845, quoted in the heritage listing, he divided his property into six parts, for his sons John, Robert, Charles and George, his daughter Sophia Ives Campbell, and Arthur Jeffreys, Sarah's husband. The suburb of Campbell in Canberra is named after him.

After Robert: The Sons and the Wharf

The heritage listing picks up the wharf story from here. The waterfront warehouses Robert built were all finished by 1825, and these are not the Campbell's Stores you see today. By about 1830 his son John had pretty well taken over the business, and he officially became head of the firm in 1836, at a time when it was in money trouble. In May 1836 Campbell's Wharf was even advertised for sale, before an injunction stopped it.

In 1841 Robert applied to enlarge the wharf so ships could unload at low tide. In 1843, just after one of the worst depressions in the colony's early years, he mortgaged it to the Australian Trust Company for £10,000. That mortgage kept getting renewed for decades, and the family didn't win full possession back until 1877, after going to the Supreme Court.

Building Campbell's Stores

Here's where the dates matter. The Dictionary of Sydney gives the stores' construction as 1839–1861. The heritage listing, which goes through the rate books year by year, tells it differently:

• Between August 1851 and September 1852 the rate book shows J. Campbell had added five stone stores with slate roofs. These are today's Bays 6 to 10.
• Three more bays, now Bays 3 to 5, were finished around 1858.
• The last three were finished by 1860. The 1861 rate book shows eleven bays in all, each of two storeys with two rooms.

A photo in the M. F. Moresby album, dated somewhere between 1856 and 1860, shows ten bays up and the eleventh still waiting for its roof. The heritage listing says the first five bays show the economy recovering after the 1840s depression, and the next six show the boom that followed the gold rushes.

Robert's son Robert junior died at Duntroon on 30 March 1859, right as the work was finishing, which left John running the firm.

Campbell's Wharf, a watercolour catalogued on Commons as Conrad Martens, 1857. Conrad Martens, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Campbell's Wharf, Sydney, 1859, a stereoscopic glass transparency by Edwin Dalton. Edwin Dalton, State Library of New South Wales (ON 235), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Who used the stores

All sorts of merchants rented space there. In 1861 the Sands Directory lists Campbell & Co., the Colonial Sugar Refining Co. stores, Peruvian guano stores, George Lloyd & Co., Robey & Co. and a customs house officer, among others. In November 1875 the wharf was described as having 22 very strong stone stores which, together with two sheds on the wharf, could hold 20,000 tons.

Here's a detail I like. The heritage listing says that as late as 1875 you could still see, behind the stores, part of the cemetery that had been on that land in the 1790s, before Campbell took it over. There was a tombstone of a marine, John Jones, who died in 1792.

Looking south from Dawes Point past the ships at Campbell's wharf to Circular Quay, about 1857. State Library of New South Wales (PXB 698), no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

The other way round: looking east across a ship at Campbell's Wharf towards Government House in the distance. State Library of New South Wales (PXB 698), no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

The ASN Company and the Third Storey

In 1876 the Australasian Steam Navigation Company bought Campbell's Wharf. The company secretary said it cost £100,000. They needed a bigger, more central wharf than their old one in Sussex Street. They rebuilt it with a 320-foot wharf and two long jetties. In 1878 the stores became "The Metcalfe Bond and Free Stores", and the "Metcalfe Stores" name stuck after that. In 1884 the company let a £30,000 contract for new offices and four stores on the site of Campbell's old house.

The ASN Co. didn't knock down Campbell's Stores. It added to them. H. P. Dove's insurance plans of about 1882 show a two-storey building of eleven bays, and the 1887 revision shows three floors. The heritage listing dates the top floor to sometime between 1882 and 1887, and elsewhere says 1883 or the mid-1880s. The new level was in dry-pressed brick laid in English bond, which is why the stores are sandstone to the top of the second level and brick above. So the "c.1890" date you sometimes see for the third storey doesn't quite match the heritage listing.

Look at the join: sandstone up to the top of the second level, brick above. That top floor came in the 1880s. sv1ambo, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The company overreached itself. In 1887 it merged into the Australasian United Steam Navigation Company, and Campbell's Wharf was no longer needed. On 28 October 1887 it was sold to the Crown for £275,000.

Government Hands: Harbour Trust and Maritime Services Board

The government pulled down most of the other buildings for a Navigation Board slipway but kept the Metcalfe Bond stores. Upward & Co. leased them until at least 1901. A branch of the Government Printing Office sat at the northern end. That northern bay, Bay 11, is built differently from the others, in brick. The heritage listing dates it to the 1890s in one place, and to about 1895 or 1915 in another.

In 1901, the year of the plague scares, the Sydney Harbour Trust took over the stores. The building of Hickson Road around 1915 meant changes to the back of Bay 10 and new doors on the second level. In 1932 a fire broke out in the northern addition, where part of the Government Printing Office and the offices of Metcalfe and Upward were. In 1958 the southernmost bay was pulled down to make way for the Overseas Passenger Terminal, which left ten of the eleven older bays.

The heritage listing says the stores were used as bond and free stores for over 120 years, from 1851 to about 1970. Each owner in turn, including the Sydney Harbour Trust and its successor the Maritime Services Board, leased parts of them to merchant companies.

The 1970s: Green Bans and Restaurants

Once the Overseas Passenger Terminal went up, commercial shipping left Sydney Cove for Darling Harbour and Pyrmont. In the 1970s the Maritime Services Board handed the stores to the Sydney Cove Redevelopment Authority. The heritage listing is clear on one point: "The existence of Campbell's Stores is indicative of the success of the 'green bans' in the 1970s which prevented the wholesale redevelopment of The Rocks."

The restoration started in 1974–75 and finished in 1978–79. It was one of the first big restoration projects in Sydney. Damaged sandstone was replaced and a service tunnel was run along the whole western side, and the stores were turned over to restaurants. The heritage listing mentions some of them by name: the Waterfront Restaurant with its "historic" maritime fit-out, the Imperial Peking, the Italian Village and Wolfies. In 1998 the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority took over the area.

Heritage Listing

Campbell's Stores went on the NSW State Heritage Register on 10 May 2002. The listing calls them "a superb example of mid-nineteenth century warehouse buildings, now rare in Sydney", and says they are the only warehouses of their type left on the foreshores of Sydney Cove. It also points to the hydraulic hoists and winches inside. The big winch wheels on Level 3 carry the words "Hudson Brothers Limited Clyde".

The back of the stores from Hickson Road, with the Metcalfe Bond Stores, 2024. Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The 2015–2018 Makeover and Today

The lease is held by Tallawoladah Pty Ltd, a company set up by the existing restaurant tenants, Dockside and the Imperial Peking group. Wikipedia says they spent $32 million on a refurbishment from 2015 to 2018. The 1980s shade canopies and ship masts at the front came down, the slate roof was replaced, and a new stand-alone "Bay 12" was built at the northern end. Restaurants started reopening in the building from autumn 2019.

Campbell's Stores at The Rocks in 2023. Chris Olszewski, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The heritage listing describes the site as running north to the Park Hyatt hotel. The Dictionary of Sydney describes Campbell's Cove as the small cove on the western side of Sydney Cove between the Overseas Passenger Terminal and Dawes Point. Next time you walk along there, look for the old cat-head beams and loading doors on the stores. They're still there from when goods were hauled up by hand.

The ASN Co building and Campbell's Stores, seen from the Park Hyatt in 2024. Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Campbell's Cove at night, Christmas 2022. Dicklyon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Timeline

• 28 April 1769 – Robert Campbell born at Greenock, Scotland.
• 1790 – Campbell Clarke & Co. set up in Calcutta.
• 1796 – The firm's first cargo for NSW, in the Sydney Cove, is wrecked.
• January 1798 – Robert becomes a partner. April 1798 – He sails for Sydney in the Hunter and buys land at Dawes Point.
• July 1799 – The firm becomes Campbell & Co.
• February 1800 – He returns to Sydney to settle.
• 1801 – Marries Sophia Palmer. By November, storehouses and a small wharf are built, claimed by the heritage listing as the first private wharf in Australia.
• 1802 – Moves into Wharf House.
• May 1803 – Buys the Canterbury estate.
• 1804 – 200 settlers sign a memorial thanking him.
• January 1805 – Sails to England in the Lady Barlow, challenging the East India Company monopoly.
• August 1806 – Returns in the Albion.
• May–June 1807 – Becomes magistrate, Naval Officer and effectively treasurer.
• January 1808 – Bligh deposed. Campbell arrested and sacked.
• June 1809 – Fined £50 for refusing to act as coroner.
• January 1810 – Reinstated by Macquarie. 12 May 1810 – Sails for England as a witness for Bligh.
• 29 June 1814 – Granted the 3 acres 3 roods at the wharf.
• 18 March 1815 – Returns to find his business ruined.
• November 1816 – Original shareholder in the Bank of New South Wales.
• July 1819 – Secretary of the Savings Bank ("Campbell's Bank").
• 1825 – Takes up land on the Limestone Plains. Appointed to the Legislative Council on 17 July.
• 1833 – Sophia dies.
• 1836 – John Campbell officially heads the firm.
• 1841 – St John's, Canberra, foundation stone laid. Consecrated 12 March 1845.
• 1843 – Wharf mortgaged for £10,000.
• 15 April 1846 – Robert Campbell dies at Duntroon.
• 1851–52 – First five bays of Campbell's Stores built.
• c.1858–1861 – Six more bays added, eleven in all.
• 1876 – ASN Co. buys Campbell's Wharf.
• 1878 – Stores become the Metcalfe Bond and Free Stores.
• 1882–1887 – Third storey added by the ASN Co.
• 28 October 1887 – Wharf sold to the Crown.
• 1901 – Sydney Harbour Trust takes over.
• 1910 – Duntroon bought for the Royal Military College.
• 1932 – Fire in the northern addition.
• 1958 – Southernmost bay demolished for the Overseas Passenger Terminal.
• 1970s – Maritime Services Board hands the stores to the Sydney Cove Redevelopment Authority. Restored 1974–79 and turned into restaurants.
• 1998 – Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority takes control.
• 10 May 2002 – Listed on the NSW State Heritage Register.
• 2015–2018 – $32 million refurbishment. Restaurants reopen from 2019.

Where the Sources Disagree

• When the stores were built. The Dictionary of Sydney says 1839–1861. The heritage listing, working from the rate books, says the first five bays went up in 1851–52 and the rest by 1860–61, and that the 1820s waterfront stores were a separate, earlier building.
• The third storey. The heritage listing gives 1882–1887, 1883 and the mid-1880s in different places. I haven't found a source backing the c.1890 date.
• Bay 11. The heritage listing dates it to the 1890s in one place and to about 1895 or 1915 in another.
• The first private wharf. The heritage listing says Campbell's 1801 wharf was claimed to be the first privately owned wharf in Australia. The ADB says that in 1826 "Campbell's wharf became a private one for the first time".
• His wedding. The ADB says November 1801. The heritage listing says September 1801.
• The Lady Barlow. The ADB says the seizure was sorted out "with no great commercial loss". Wikipedia says he lost £7,000 on the voyage.
• "Father of Australian commerce". The ADB's wording is "father of the mercantile community".
• Naming Duntroon. Wikipedia says he renamed the property in 1846. The ADB gives no date for the name.
• The Sydney compensation. Wikipedia says £3,000 plus land and sheep. The ADB describes a dispute over whether he had been awarded £8,000 or £4,000.

My Earlier Posts

• Campbell's Wharf
• Canterbury House
• Campbell's Fields
• Assorted Drawings Of Old Colonial Sydney Town
• The Rocks at Night – August 2017
• Fort Denison – Pinchgut Island – Sydney Harbour – From 1788 to Today

Sources

• Australian Dictionary of Biography, "Campbell, Robert (1769–1846)": adb.anu.edu.au/biography/campbell-robert-1876
• Heritage NSW, State Heritage Register, "Campbell's Stores" (SHR, listed 10 May 2002): apps.environment.nsw.gov.au … ID=5053151
• Wikipedia, "Campbell's Stores" (drawn from the SHR listing): en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campbell's_Stores
• Wikipedia, "Robert Campbell (Australian politician, born 1769)": en.wikipedia.org
• Wikipedia, "Lady Barlow (1803 ship)": en.wikipedia.org
• Wikipedia, "St John the Baptist Church, Reid": en.wikipedia.org
• Dictionary of Sydney, "Campbell, Robert" (includes Campbell's Cove, NSW Savings Bank and Charles Hook): dictionaryofsydney.org/person/campbell_robert
• Dictionary of Sydney, "Campbell's Stores": dictionaryofsydney.org/building/campbells_stores
• Parliament of NSW, former members, "Mr Robert (1) Campbell (1769–1846)": parliament.nsw.gov.au
• Pictures: Wikimedia Commons, State Library of New South Wales (PXB 698 and ON 235), with credits under each image.

 Dawes Point / Tar-ra - The Rocks - Sydney - New South wales 

Dawes Point is a historic area located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is situated on the southern edge of Sydney Cove, adjacent to The Rocks and overlooking Sydney Harbour. Here's some information about Dawes Point:

1. Indigenous History: Prior to European settlement, the area now known as Dawes Point was inhabited by the indigenous Gadigal people, who were part of the Eora Nation. They had a deep connection to the land and used the area for fishing, hunting, and gathering.

2. European Settlement: Dawes Point holds significant historical importance as one of the earliest European settlements in Australia. It was named after Lieutenant William Dawes, an astronomer and marine officer who arrived with the First Fleet in 1788. Dawes established an astronomical observatory at the point to study the stars and conduct surveys.

3. Dawes Point Battery: In the early years of the colony, a fortification known as Dawes Point Battery was constructed at the site to defend the settlement. It consisted of cannons and military barracks. The battery played a role in protecting the fledgling colony and Sydney Harbour.

4. Harbour Views: Dawes Point offers panoramic views of Sydney Harbour, including sights such as the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, and the surrounding waterfront. The area is popular among tourists and locals who visit to enjoy the stunning vistas and take photographs.

5. Historic Landmarks: Dawes Point is home to several historic landmarks. The Dawes Point Battery and Observatory Hill Park are open to the public, providing insights into the area's colonial past. There are also various heritage-listed buildings in the vicinity, showcasing the architectural heritage of the early settlement.

6. Public Spaces and Events: The area around Dawes Point is well-utilized for public events and celebrations. It serves as a venue for festivals, markets, art exhibitions, and cultural events throughout the year. The open spaces and waterfront location make it an attractive spot for gatherings and recreational activities.

7. Accessibility: Dawes Point is easily accessible by foot from The Rocks or Circular Quay. It is also served by public transportation, including buses and ferries, making it convenient for visitors to reach the area.

Dawes Point is a place of historical significance and natural beauty, offering a glimpse into Sydney's early colonial history and providing stunning views of Sydney Harbour. The combination of its heritage, location, and public spaces makes it a popular destination for both locals and tourists to explore and enjoy.

Sepultura joke geographical features in Port Jackson’s have jewel names, including 
Sydney Cove – Warrane
Bendalong point – Dubbagullee
Dawes Point - Tar-ra
Here, the geographical names board of New South Wales has officially recognise the original place names by pairing them with existing European names. Tar-ra Is the name aboriginal people gave the Hedland which now supports the southern part one of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
is the name aboriginal people gave the Hedland which now supports the southern pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The colonies named the point after the first fleet astronomer who established in Observatory and set up camp here.
The tenant William George was also a linguist. His friendship with the young local women Patyegarang  Has resulted in one of the earliest dictionaries of aboriginal words.
has resulted in one of the earliest dictionaries of aboriginal words.
Dolls Point Park has archaeological excavations in interpretation relating to the early fortification built here to deter England’s international enemies.
This is an excellent vantage point for appreciating the might of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, carrying its heavy cover cargo of trains and traffic overhead

Sydney’s First Cemetery – Beyond Sydney Cove, at the Head of a Small Bay

Sydney's First Cemetery -   Beyond Sydney Cove Terminal At The Head Of A Small Bay

Hereabouts Was Situated Sydney's First Burial Ground 1788 -1792. Some Headstones Were Still In Position In 1874

Captain Collins Records - "Every Person Belonging To The Settlement Being Landed, The Numbers Amounted To 1030 Persons. The Scurvy Now Broke Out, Which, Aided By Dysentery, Began To Fill The Hospital And Several Died. 

Sergeant James Scott Of The Marines Recorded The First Death, Writing In His Journal

"Sunday 24th February, Thos Harmsworth, Son To. This Harmsworth A stone Died Of A Feaver:" A Few Weeks Later On 30th April, The Same Journal Noted. "This Harmsworth, Marine Died."

In June 1788 Surgeon general John White  Stated That 28 Convict Men And Women Had Died, Also Three Marines & Ten Children.  No Doubt They Were Interred In This Burial Ground, The First Cemetery In Sydney. 

Later, Collins Wrote Of The Proposed Barracks - "Their Situation Being Directly In The Neighbourhood Of The Ground Appropriated To The Burial Of The Dead, It Became Necessary To Choose Another Spot.... The Governor, In The Company With Rev Mr Johnson, Set Apart The Ground Formerly Cultivated By The Late Captain Shea Of The Marines. "

A Letter From A Female Convict Written On 14th November 1788 (Historical Records Of New South Wales Volume 2) Describes The West Side Of Sydney Cove, The Area Known As The Rocks, And Goes On to Say:  - 

At The Extremity Of The Lines, Where Since Our Arrival The Dead Are Buried, There Is A Place Called The Church Yard, but We Hear, As Soon As A Sufficient Quantity Of Bricks That Can Be Made, A Church Is To Be Built, And Named St Phillip, After The Governor."

'

The Sydney Gazette Of The 5th February 1804 Said - 

"The Plan Of Inclosing The Burial Ground In Order To Prevent Swine And Other Stock From Grazing Upon It And Rooting Up The Earth, Has Been Proposed By The Sexton, And Approved Of. Several Gentlemen Have Already Contributed Liberally To Reward The Labour That Must Necessarily Attend The Execution of The Design."

Garrison Church - Lower Fort Street - Argyle Street - The Rocks

The Garrison Church
Corner Of Argyle street and Lower Fort street


This was the first official Military Church in NSW & serviced the Military Garrison at Dawes Point. Imagine the spectacle of Red Coats marching up Lower Fort Street from the artillery Barracks to attend morning prayer. 

The holy Trinity Church, designed by E.T Blacket, Was The First Garrison Church In Australia. The foundation stone was laid in 1840.

The Lord Bishop of Australia, assisted by the Reverend William Cowper, senior chaplain of the parish of Saint Philip, perform the ceremony. The service commenced with the 123rd Psalm, the lesson from the first of people to the Corinthians, chapter 3, the collect for Trinity Sunday after which the stone was lowered into place, and which of the following inscription –

This foundation stone of the church in honour of the holy Trinity, erected with the aid of her majesties government by the inhabitants of the parish of Saint Philip was laid by the right Reverend Father in God, William Lord Bishop of Australia, on the 23rd day of June 1840. Philip was laid by the Roman Australia

The location of this foundation stone today is unknown

The Sydney morning Herald on 3 November 1842 said-

The garrison Church of the holy Trinity is of next Gothic order, about 100‘ x 55‘. The height of the walls is about 45 feet. There has been much discussion as to who was responsible for the plans of the garrison church. Morton Herman, architect, wrote in the Blacket –

The architect was Henry Ginn, who had attended the laying of the foundation stone on 23 June 1840. Lack of funds cause a delay which prevented him from getting even a small portion of the nave roof in until 26 May 1844. The small roof portion served until 1855, when Blacket appeared. 

Then incumbent of holy Trinity, the Reverend Wilkinson, had got together sufficient money to roof in the whole nave and this was done two packets design

—————————

When William Grant Broughton, only Bishop of Australia, call the parish meeting in the old Saint Phillips church, on Church Hill, in December 1839 He had a pressing problem.

Phillips was overcrowded; the church must give you a Millers point to take the overflow. The rocks area of the points one for sailors, not a churchgoing agreed

The Bishop had them in mind when you’re dressed as a parish office is the new church holy Trinity wants to be for Mariners.

Primarily a soldiers church. In 1843 service as we can in the part finished building design by Henry Ginn. Regularly attend the morning service.

The holy Trinity was in large to go pick designs by Edmund Blacket. The applicants have been a ramshackle building simulator gift, notably a rich east window, and memorial to the grandparents David Mitchell.

The holy Trinity was in large to go pick designs by Edmund Blacket. The elegance into what has been a ramshackle building stimulated gift, notably a rich east window, and memorial to the grandparents David Scott Mitchell.

The garrison churches to curious features in its history. One is that for 30 years no collection plate was passed around, offerings been taken at the Sure. The other is at the church with never consecrated. Holy Trinity is now circle monument as well as a parish church. It has a regular Sunday congregation and he’s always pack when you anniversary of laying of the foundation stone on 23 June 1840 is commemorated.

This was the first original official Military Church in New South Wales and serviced the Military Garrison at Dawes point.

This was the first original official military church in New South Wales and serviced the military garrison at Dawes point.

Imagine the spectacle of redcoats marching up lower Fort Street from the military Valley Barricks and attending morning prayer.  Although the church was officially called the holy Trinity Church, it continues to not be known as the garrison church. Military flag still doing the churches interior

Sydney Harbour Bridge 80th Anniversary (2012)

The Sydney Harbour Bridge spans the harbour at its narrowest between Dawes Point (south) and Milsons Point (north) — a riveted steel through-arch carrying road, rail and footways, with granite-faced concrete pylons. Ideas for a fixed crossing circulated through the nineteenth century (Francis Greenway is often cited as an early advocate under Macquarie); serious modern planning crystallised under engineer J. J. C. Bradfield, appointed to harbour-bridge and city-transit work from 1912. The Sydney Harbour Bridge Act 1922 authorised a high-level cantilever or arch; the construction contract went to Dorman, Long & Co. of Middlesbrough in 1924, with detailed structural design associated with Sir Ralph Freeman.

Approach and foundation work ran through the mid-1920s; the arch halves met in 1930. Premier Jack Lang officially opened the Bridge on 19 March 1932 — famously after New Guard member Francis de Groot slashed the ceremonial ribbon. Roughly eight years of construction employed thousands through the Depression; granite came from Moruya, steel from England and Australian mills. The Bridge remains a National Heritage–listed landmark and the everyday link Bradfield tied to the City Circle and northern lines.

The 2012 “80th anniversary” framing and any embedded video can stay as media; the paragraphs above are the place history the thin anniversary heading lacked.